I know this may not qualify as a popular topic on several fronts, but I wonder if it might not be worth trying to get NARP (and friends) to press Amtrak to make a bid for VIA's Ren sleepers. Seeing as the Ocean is basically screwed, the Canadian uses Budds, and I believe the Churchill train does the same, would it be worth trying to get Amtrak to grab at those cars? That'd be something like 50 single-level sleepers, which would be enough to switch the sleeper services on several trains from bilevel to single level (and in turn allow a stack of Superliner sleepers to get shifted to the Builder, Chief, etc.).
My main question is what sort of operational issues would be encountered. If it's a matter of couplings, I suspect that could be fixed; windows could be temporarily waivered while they're replaced...and I think the ADA issues were actually dealt with in part when VIA did an overhaul on some of the cars to allow wheelchair access. Basically, are there any elements that would be impossible to fix at a reasonable cost/in a reasonable timeframe?
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I will say that this goes to a larger topic of pressing Amtrak to grab basically whatever the heck they can acquire in reasonable quantities, that isn't horribly broken down, and that wouldn't require a fortune to renovate. I know Amtrak doesn't /want/ to do this...but for crying out loud, when they've got multiple reports saying that capacity additions to various routes would significantly improve operating results, such as the PIP on the Builder, at some point "want" and "need" stop matching up and Amtrak needs some things they don't want.
Part of the larger issue is that, as discussed elsewhere, Amtrak is slammed for capacity...but trying to put in a "large enough" order for the Western trains is going to be difficult, particularly if the uses for a larger order aren't fairly self-evident. Adding a sleeper to each of the CHI-West Coast trains, plus one for the Cap, would only use up 19 sleepers (5 Builder, 6 Zephyr, 5 Chief, and 3 Cap); you might be able to stretch such an order to around 25-30 because of equipment cycling issues at CHI, but 30 cars does not an order make.
My main question is what sort of operational issues would be encountered. If it's a matter of couplings, I suspect that could be fixed; windows could be temporarily waivered while they're replaced...and I think the ADA issues were actually dealt with in part when VIA did an overhaul on some of the cars to allow wheelchair access. Basically, are there any elements that would be impossible to fix at a reasonable cost/in a reasonable timeframe?
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I will say that this goes to a larger topic of pressing Amtrak to grab basically whatever the heck they can acquire in reasonable quantities, that isn't horribly broken down, and that wouldn't require a fortune to renovate. I know Amtrak doesn't /want/ to do this...but for crying out loud, when they've got multiple reports saying that capacity additions to various routes would significantly improve operating results, such as the PIP on the Builder, at some point "want" and "need" stop matching up and Amtrak needs some things they don't want.
Part of the larger issue is that, as discussed elsewhere, Amtrak is slammed for capacity...but trying to put in a "large enough" order for the Western trains is going to be difficult, particularly if the uses for a larger order aren't fairly self-evident. Adding a sleeper to each of the CHI-West Coast trains, plus one for the Cap, would only use up 19 sleepers (5 Builder, 6 Zephyr, 5 Chief, and 3 Cap); you might be able to stretch such an order to around 25-30 because of equipment cycling issues at CHI, but 30 cars does not an order make.
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